ch61-ch80 · 075-ch74

Chapter 74

Lugardo folded his spread wings, shifting back to human form through Mimicry as he descended to the ground. Watching the Holy Sword wielder, who had landed first, pumping "Meteor Swarm" into Gaidorl, he almost felt a twinge of sympathy — reminded of himself from just the other day. That mercilessness and absolute decisiveness were alien for a human.

When exercising violence against others, Lugardo needed an emotional uplift. He had to flip a switch inside himself before he could commit to harming someone — or something like that. As a Demon, he'd admit he had a strong pragmatic side, but that didn't mean he could just casually beat someone up at his baseline mood. Violence required reasoning, purpose, or pretext.

When he'd provoked Kagurazaka Chizuru, it was partly to gauge her ability — but also to psych himself up. And yet — what about that Holy Sword wielder?

With the exact same tone she'd used during their cheerful conversation, she was pumping countless "meteors" into a Demon, disabling them completely. Utterly merciless... no, if she hadn't held back, she would've killed them, so she was showing some restraint — but there was zero mercy in the attack. No hatred, no anger, no sense of duty — simply because she'd judged it necessary, she was brutalizing another person without needing any emotional swing whatsoever.

Embedded in the asphalt, Gaidorl was being bombarded with "meteors" — he'd probably lost the will to fight after the first two shots. Everything after that was just routine to ensure he was completely incapacitated.

Arms broken, legs broken, ribs broken, collarbones broken, fingers crushed — damage dealt across the entire body, leaving no chance of escape. The Holy Sword wielder grabbed Gaidorl by the scruff of his neck — now in a state where "left alone, he'd probably die in a few hours" — then turned to Lugardo, who was standing a short distance away, thoroughly creeped out, and flashed the same smile as before. "Oh, nice and smooth Mimicry. You're definitely used to blending into human society — anyway, that's fine. Let's go see the other one." Beaming cheerfully, the Holy Sword wielder started running, dragging the half-dead Gaidorl behind her. What Lugardo thought, how he'd answer, how he'd react — she didn't seem to consider any of it. Probably because she had no interest in him to begin with. The natural enemy of Demons — the one said to have killed the Demon King — showing zero interest in them was deeply ironic. Maybe even Gilgeil was nothing more than a mild annoyance to her. Saying "let's go" but already moving on her own, the Holy Sword wielder took off — and Lugardo followed, heading to where the magic cannon archer Bargas had been.

Apparently he'd chosen the roof of a private house as his sniper position. Bargas had been dragged from there to a nearby alley, his hands and feet encased in rock, rolled onto the asphalt. Lugardo couldn't remember exactly when he'd last seen him, but his aged face — looking about forty in human terms despite being younger than Gilgeil — was just as he remembered. Same as Gaidorl — Lugardo remembered Bargas used to grumble about "Demon pride" and "if only the Demon King were still alive."

Seeing him now, rolled on the ground with all four limbs sealed in rock — Lugardo didn't feel sympathy, exactly, but it gave him a profoundly strange feeling. Demons, who should be far stronger than humans.

And yet, here they were, defeated by humans. "Here we go~" The Holy Sword wielder tossed Gaidorl — who was about three steps away from being a bludgeoned corpse — next to Bargas, then flashed a brilliant smile at Hayasaka Toru, who was standing with a wooden sword resting on his shoulder. "Toru, Toru, I brought them back alive and everything. Aren't I impressive?"

The Holy Sword wielder puffed out her chest with a hmph. Toru made a slightly conflicted face, then nodded. Standing at attention near Toru were Maisaka the "Scales"... and Soma Kengo, who had presumably sealed Bargas's limbs in rock. "Why are you bastards here...!?"

Unlike Gaidorl, Bargas apparently still had enough energy to talk. He twisted his neck to glare at Toru and spat those words in a voice thick with concentrated hatred. "Uh... you know these guys?"

So saying, Toru completely ignored Bargas's question and directed his words at Lugardo. He also picked up the short staff lying on the ground, examining it closely. It was probably the magical medium Bargas had used to fire his "magic cannon shots." "The one the Holy Sword wielder beat to a pulp is Gaidorl. The one Soma sealed in rock is Bargas. Two of the ones who disappeared with Gilgeil." "Hmm. How many flunkies does Gaga-ge-go have left?"

"Gaga...? Oh, there should be four more. Assuming they haven't killed each other off."

"White."

That was Maisaka the "Scales," speaking from the side. Toru went "Hmm" again with a nod, stashed Bargas's staff in the magic bag at his waist, then lightly prodded the half-dead Gaidorl with the wooden sword in his right hand.

A pained "Gah—" escaped Gaidorl's mouth. Maisaka frowned slightly at this, but Soma and the Holy Sword wielder were completely unfazed. "You bastard! Filthy human, what are you—!?"

"A question, I guess. Torture works too, though. Ah... but wait. You guys would prefer a promise, right? How about 'we take turns answering each other's questions'?"

Toru said this in an utterly ordinary tone.

Facing a captured Demon and a half-dead Demon, his heart wasn't shaken in the slightest. If anything, he seemed almost bored — and Lugardo caught himself holding his breath. He was supposed to be just an ordinary human.

Until recently, not even an explorer — just a D-rank dungeon cleaner. How could someone like that be this composed? "What are you talking about...?"

Bargas furrowed his brows in suspicion.

The next instant, Toru struck Gaidorl's leg with the wooden sword. A leg that was already broken — with absolutely zero hesitation, and considerable force. "AGH—!?"

"Hey! What the hell are you—!?"

The pained cry came as naturally as expected. Bargas panicked. Toru, still silent, swung the wooden sword once more — adding another joint to a leg that was already bent in a direction it shouldn't be. Oh, this guy's snapped — Lugardo finally realized.

Half-reflexively, he enclosed the area in a "barrier," blocking perception from outside to inside. There was no telling what kind of screams might echo from here on. "Once you answer one, I answer one. 'We take turns answering each other's questions.' That work for you?"

More of a confirmation than a question. Bargas had no choice but to nod.

Once he'd nodded — that was already a contract, as a Demon. "Then here's my question. Did you guys come after the people around me on Gilgeil's orders?"

"Y... yes. Why are you here right now? You were supposed to be streaming."

"I had about a two-hour delay. I limited the broadcast scope, live-streamed the footage, then released it to the general public with a time lag as if it were live. Where's Gilgeil?"

"I don't know. You — the one commanding the Holy Sword wielder... Hayasaka Toru, was it. Gilgeil believed that by causing damage around you, he could drag you out of human society. If things went well, the public institutions of the humans might even be able to restrict your movements." So that was the plan — Lugardo found himself honestly impressed.

As long as Hayasaka Toru lived within human society, he was subject to social constraints. That was true for anyone — but if those constraints were tightened enough, it would become hard to move freely. In other words, he was thoroughly terrified of the Holy Sword wielder. "You went as far as rigging a stream delay to lure our attack... you predicted Gilgeil's assault...?"

"Ah, well, the man himself didn't show up. I figured he'd strike if I showed an opening. The ones who left the Demon group with Gilgeil — are they his subordinates? Are you guys under Gilgeil's command?"

"No. We are comrades who share the same goal. We often heed Gilgeil's opinions because he's sharp, but we are not his subordinates. How could you predict the attack?"

"'Cause if I were the enemy, I wouldn't wanna go anywhere near her."

Toru's gaze shifted to the Holy Sword wielder. The person in question was tilting her head with a puzzled look, question marks practically floating above her — but considering the stream where she'd slaughtered the black dragon in five seconds, and the current state of affairs, it was hardly surprising that Gilgeil would reach that conclusion.

No — it was only natural.

Lugardo hadn't realized it until this very moment... but Gilgeil had probably decided the instant the "Holy Sword wielder" appeared on stream that he would absolutely avoid a head-on confrontation with her. She was too far beyond the norm to deal with directly. "Ah, it's still my turn to ask. Not subordinates, don't know his whereabouts, but you listen to his opinions... you guys got some kind of 'constraint' bound with Gilgeil?"

"We have bound no such thing."

"Black."

The instant Maisaka declared it, there was a dull thunk. Toru had slugged Gaidorl in the side with the wooden sword. "What are you doing!?"

"I said we take turns answering, but I never said lying was off the table. Was 'what are you doing' your question? It's harassment. You hate watching your buddy get hurt, right? Alright, my question then. What's your goal?"

"The restoration of Demonkind! Are you going to kill us!?"

"Who knows. Depends on your attitude going forward. Not like I'm dead set on not killing you. You bastards butchered people's neighbors trying to corner us — you think I've got any mercy to spare for that? You taking us lightly?" Something crawled up his spine.

Lugardo felt a chill looking at Toru's expressionless face — a cold he hadn't felt even when being beaten to a pulp by the Holy Sword wielder.

This man — if he decided to, he'd cut down anyone, no matter who or what they were. Without caring about anything. "We aren't... taking you lightly... Understood. I understand. I'll tell you what I know. Do you... intend to help Gaidorl?"

His voice was laced with unmistakable fear.

Bargas had felt something like the same chill Lugardo had. If it was just their deaths, they'd have been prepared for that... but would this man stop at just that? That was probably what crossed his mind. "Who knows. It's not like I'm dying to kill you either. Too much hassle. What does 'restoration of Demonkind' mean exactly?"

"— The resurrection of the Demon King!"

The instant he said it, Lugardo could sense the magical power draining from Bargas's body.

Like a balloon deflating, like fresh vegetables wilting — the rapid loss of energy was visible even from the outside.

An instinctive revulsion struck Lugardo's chest, but he clenched his teeth and endured it. It was clear Bargas had broken some kind of contract... which meant, a contract with Gilgeil? "White. He's not lying."

Maisaka said it with a bored expression. Soma maintained his poker face, but Toru looked thoroughly exasperated.

The Holy Sword wielder — tilted her head with a puzzled look again. "Resurrection of the Maou? The Demon King — that Demon King? Yuggarm Gargloa? I killed him, though?"

It was an incredibly inconsiderate thing to say, but she probably had neither the intention nor the need to spare the Demons' feelings to begin with. The withered Bargas managed a dry smile at the Holy Sword wielder. "I know that full well. Tirieal — you killed the Demon King. We know what happened to you after that, too. Betrayed by the kingdom, driven out by the humans, and finally disappearing in the elves' forest, was it?"

"Don't call me by that name."

An icy voice.

Of course, the Holy Sword wielder's hair-trigger atmosphere was terrifying. Even someone as dense as Lugardo could vaguely sense there was something in her past.

But... she was better than Toru.

Certainly, the Holy Sword wielder could kill Bargas on a whim. Same with Lugardo. Maybe even Gilgeil could only manage to hold his ground for a brief moment against her. But that was all.

If they killed you, that would probably be the end.

Toru... probably wouldn't let it end there. "Continue."

So saying, Toru stepped between the Holy Sword wielder and Bargas. For just a moment, the Holy Sword wielder's face flashed with something pained — but Toru gave a small shrug and cut his gaze away from her. To face Bargas. "...We were half in doubt ourselves. We'd sensed that the 'Holy Sword' was a mythic-class weapon capable of interfering with souls, but when we learned Tiri—the Holy Sword wielder had been resurrected, it became conviction. Mythic-class tools can reach the divine realm. The Demon King's resurrection, too, might..." "Wrong. It's your turn. We take turns."

Bargas had been launching into what seemed like a deathbed confession, a monologue laced with resignation — and Toru cut right through it without a care. Bargas's eyebrows shot up in surprise at having his words so decisively lopped off.

And no wonder — he'd been in the middle of something deeply important.

And yet — Toru acted like it didn't matter. "...Hayasaka. Do you not know the Holy Sword wielder's past?"

"I don't. And I don't care enough to dig into it either. If she wants me to know, she'll tell me herself. If she doesn't wanna talk, I'm not gonna ask."

"Toru..."

The Holy Sword wielder's gaze, tinged with some kind of emotion, didn't meet Toru — who had his back turned. Lugardo thought it was typical of him to be considerate like that, and at the same time, typical of him to be so nonchalant about it.

As far as Lugardo was concerned... he'd grown a little fond of Hayasaka Toru. The past doesn't matter.

Even Lugardo, raised by the old generation chained to the past, had thought the same. And yet, despite thinking that way, he hadn't chosen to leave his comrades behind for the sake of freedom. Such sentiments were, of course, completely lost on Toru — who looked up at the sky as if thinking for a moment, then opened his mouth. "Alright, let's make this the last round of 'taking turns.' Do you believe Gilgeil's goal is the restoration of Demonkind and the resurrection of the Demon King?"

Answering required a brief silence.

Glancing back, Lugardo noticed the stone wall that had been covering Toru's apartment was gone. And only now did he realize — Kujo Reiko, who had been with them on the stream, wasn't here. She'd probably headed toward the apartment. Everyone's got their own things going on.

Even Lugardo didn't wish for the annihilation of his fellow Demons — not all of whom he was particularly fond of. He thought Bargas and Gaidorl getting killed here would be understandable, but he couldn't bring himself to think that the annihilation of all Demonkind along with them would be fine too. Was this weakness?

Then was Toru trying to protect his neighbors also weakness? "...I am not certain." Bargas murmured quietly.

And that, for the time being, became the signal that things had settled.